Amazon just killed the Ziploc bag business. Its new $129 Kindle Paperwhite, the best-selling Kindle's first hardware update in three years, finally makes the midrange ebook reader waterproof. That's a great reason for beach and bathtub readers to finally cast off their plastic wrap and pick one up.

I love ereaders. They're focused, calm, and peaceful. Amazon absolutely dominates the market in the US, but ereader competition feels like it's picking up this year, thanks to Kobo's integration with public libraries. Now Amazon is coming back with a huge step forward.

The new Paperwhite feels very, very different from previous midrange Kindles, because it has a flat front; there's no lip around the screen anymore. Amazon is using a plastic-backed 300ppi E Ink display, but it isn't E Ink Mobius; it's the company's own design.

The device feels about the same size as the old Paperwhite, but it also feels just a little bit slippery in the hand—it has a matte back, but it isn't textured or grippy. Maybe I'm just used to curling my fingers around the lip, and the flat-front design is going to take some time for my hands to get used to. At 6.4 ounces, it's lighter than the previous Paperwhite, which was 7.2 ounces.

And, of course, it's waterproof. The new Paperwhite has the same IPX8 rating as the Kindle Oasis, which means you can dunk it in fresh water for an hour. Amazon says it also tested other common scenarios that aren't part of IPX8 testing—dropping it in a hot tub, for instance, or dunking it in salt water. In both cases, it's fine if you fish it out and rinse it off relatively quickly, the company said.

I'm a little concerned about what happens when this flat-front Paperwhite lands face down, in terms of the screen scratching. The lip on past Kindles protected the screen a bit. Naturally, there's a range of cases Amazon plans to sell, starting with a $29 water-resistant fabric cover in black, blue or yellow, and going up to $39 and $59 leather covers.

But the flat front is going to be great at the beach. The screen lip tends to annoyingly collect sand, and sand will just roll right off the flat front.

The new Paperwhite's screen and UI are still pretty Kindley. The screen is the same color, size, and density as the previous Paperwhite, with a non-color-changing blue light. Amazon did change the light from four LEDs to five for more even lighting. You flip pages by tapping or swiping on the screen.

Those page swipes and transitions are butter-smooth. Amazon's E Ink firmware is very good right now, so you don't get frequent page flashes, just gentle fades.

There are a few software/hardware changes here. The device now has Bluetooth, so it can now play Audible audiobooks over Bluetooth headphones. That means you can browse and buy audiobooks on the Paperwhite and sync audio listening with text reading.

You can also set up packages of custom settings, easily accessible from a drop-down menu. This is for families who like to read in different typefaces or modes—having a teen use teeny type while an older parent uses large type, for instance.

The Paperwhite now becomes, by far, the cheapest mainstream waterproof ereader. I mean, maybe there's some obscure European brand out there, but your main alternatives are the $179 Kobo Aura H2O, more expensive Kobo models, and the $249 Kindle Oasis. That's going to matter for a lot of people, especially for beach and bath readers.

The new Kindle will come in several versions. The base model has 8GB of storage and costs $129.99. There will be a 32GB version for people who store a lot of audiobooks, for $159.99, and a cellular-enabled version, for $249.99. It goes on pre-order today, and it will start shipping November 7.

About the Author

PCMag.com's lead mobile analyst, Sascha Segan, has reviewed hundreds of smartphones, tablets and other gadgets in more than 13 years with PCMag. He's the head of our Fastest Mobile Networks project, hosts our One Cool Thing daily Web show, and writes opinions on tech and society.
Segan is also a multiple award-winning travel writer. Other than ... See Full Bio

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